[willreichelt]

A couple of weeks ago, I took on a photography project slightly different to the bands and film events that I’m usually blogging on about.

My friend Melissa, proprietress of the designer lingerie boutique Dirty Pretty Things asked if I would come along to shoot a new striptease class that she has put together with burlesque performer Rachel St. James called Salon Burlesque.

I knew absolutely nothing about burlesque striptease, besides having a vague recognition of the types of outfits and lingerie worn by the dancers, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect.

It was a fun evening. The emphasis of the class wasn’t so much on the striptease specifically, but more the entire experience – music, dancing, fancy costumes, cocktails… AND stripping. More like a very girly party, really. My Y chromosome felt a bit out of place.

Melissa Gallagher, hostess extraordinaire.

Gloves and feathers, tools of the burlesque trade.

I also took a quick snap of Melissa & Rachel in the Dirty Pretty Things change room.

It’s almost now a given that every successive film that Pixar releases will be bigger in scope, look better, and advance the field of 3D computer graphics by another stride – they are so far ahead of the competition, you only have their other films to compare against.

So, in a weird way, when I went to the Popcorn Taxi event for Wall-E last week, I was simultaneously blown away AND blase about the film. It was spectacular, but deep down, without really knowing much about the film beforehand, I knew it would be.

They’ve succeeded on every level – Wall-E has the usual sweet, “universal appeal” story that Pixar usually blend up, but it also has a slightly frightening message about where we’re headed as a civilisation that offsets the gooeyness nicely. It also looks absolutely beautiful.

The director of the film, Andrew Stanton (Finding Nemo) and sound designer Ben Burtt (inventor of iconic sounds such as the lightsabre and Darth Vader’s rasp, now the voice of Wall-E himself) were there to discuss the production process, from the story development, animation, all the way through to post-production.

I was particularly interested in the idea that Stanton wanted to create a film that looked like the science fiction films of the 70′s – the use of anamorphic lenses (a type of wide-angle lens which stretches the width of the image but not the height, creating a widescreen aspect ratio), and incorporating real-world camera properties such as optical breathing and barrel distortion.

Film geek heaven.

Death Cab For Cutie, performing at the Enmore Theatre, Sydney. 18.08.08.

I’m a huge fan of DCFC, so getting the chance to shoot them on my birthday was pretty special – thank you, BRAG.

Despite the focus on the new album Narrow Stairs, the set was a fairly well-rounded snapshot of their back catalogue. I’m definitely more a fan of their earlier work on Transatlanticism and The Photo Album than the new stuff, so to have those records covered in the first three songs was great, but also kinda frustrating because I was torn between making the most of the very short time allowed for shooting, and sitting back to enjoy the tunes.

Beach House, performing at the Hopetoun Hotel, Sydney. 20.08.08.

Last week, Popcorn Taxi screened classic Australian film The Man From Hong Kong, an action-packed 70′s spy-spoof Kung-Fu flick starring ex-James Bond George Lazenby and Kung-Fu legend Yu Wang, directed by Brian Trenchard-Smith (who also notably directed a young Nicole Kidman in BMX Bandits).

On the stage to discuss their experiences making the film were veteran stuntman Grant Page (Mad Max) and actor Roger Ward, with Trenchard-Smith phoning in from Los Angeles. Mark Hartley, director of new documentary Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild Untold Story of Ozploitation! (which features interviews with all three guests) was also in attendance.

These New Puritans, performing at the Oxford Art Factory, Sydney. 12.08.08.

After opening for Sigur Rós last week and jetting up and down the coast for various dates in Brisbane and Melbourne, Australian band Pivot launched their album O Soundtrack My Heart back here in Sydney at the Oxford Art Factory on friday night.

It was great to get a double-dose of them in such a short space of time (they’ve been pretty busy touring Europe since signing with Warp Records back in March); and interesting also to be able to compare their sound across such different venues, from the cavernous Hordern Pavilion to the much more intimate loungeroom of the OAF. As lush and atmospheric as the sound that filled the Hordern was, I definitely prefer the more visceral, in-your-face experience in the smaller space, where you can almost get splashed with Laurence Pike’s sweat as he beats the hell out of his drumkit right in front of you.

Vampire Weekend, performing at the Metro, Sydney. 04.08.08.

Sigur Rós, performing at the Hordern Pavilion, Sydney. 02.08.08

A few weeks ago, I shot some promotional still photography for a short film that’s about to hit the festival circuit called The Tourist, written, directed & starring Matthew Jenkin.

“Believing the answers to many of life’s questions lay somewhere in the world, a young traveller backpacks his way across the globe. He encounters friendship, love and a confusing washing system in southern France.”

Watch the trailer.

The very charismatic Lightspeed Champion at Oxford Art Factory on thursday night. He’s on his way up the coast, next stop Splendour In The Grass.